Nursing schools to take 75% recruits from home districts

Zimbabwe has tightened its nursing recruitment system, mandating that at least 75 percent of trainee nurses admitted to any training school must come from the district or province where the school is located.

The directive follows the decentralisation of recruitment and comes amid reports that some desperate applicants were paying up to US$1,000 to secure a place. Authorities say the new quota aims to boost local representation, curb external manipulation, and eliminate corruption that had crept into the system.

Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Sleiman Kwidini announced the new rules during a parliamentary session, responding to concerns raised by Dangamvura legislator Prosper Mutseyami that some regions had gone through entire intakes without a single local candidate being selected.

"As far as the Ministry is concerned, we have decentralised nurse training. Each region has more than two schools of nursing. We have introduced a quota system ensuring 75 percent of students recruited from these areas are local," said Deputy Minister Kwidini.

Competition for nursing places remains intense. Over 100,000 aspiring nurses apply annually, yet only about 1,200 trainees are admitted nationwide. For example, Sally Mugabe and Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals together receive between 5,000 and 8,000 applications per intake but can only enrol about 80 students, conducting two intakes a year. In Bulawayo, Mpilo Central Hospital, United Bulawayo Hospitals, and Ingutsheni Psychiatric Hospital can collectively take only about 40 students annually.

The Ministry hopes the new quota system will spread opportunities more evenly, ensure that communities directly benefit from locally trained health workers, and restore confidence in the application process by shutting out corrupt intermediaries.

With competition fierce, the new rule could provide a much-needed lifeline for many rural and provincial nursing hopefuls.